Nine Chapters of Strange Cases

Chapter 305 Guessing He Will Surrender

As Chang Sui Guan Lin spoke, he couldn't help but shrink his neck, his eyes filled with trepidation.

"The girl was seriously injured, and Young Master Ying wanted to take her to see a doctor, but she refused. She only said that her name was Chu You and that she was going to the Court of Justice to report to the authorities and save Min Wenshu..."

Upon hearing this, Song Ying picked up where Guan Lin left off.

"I rushed to the Court of Justice from here, but after running for a while, I calmed down. Then I saw Miss Chu You going to report to the authorities, and I hesitated for a moment. After all, because of the mess between Song Ran and An Ning, I had a big fight with him at home."

I spoke up for Xu Zhi... my sister-in-law. Chu You reported it to the authorities, and the Court of Justice will definitely look for Song Ran, and will naturally find the small courtyard next door.

Going back in would not only be pointless, but I might also be identified as a suspect.

As Song Ying spoke, she looked at Zhou Zhao and said, "While I was hesitating in the carriage, I saw Chen Yin, Huo Ting, and Min Wenshu rushing over."

Chen Yin kept shouting as he walked, saying that Song Ran and An Ning had died in the secret room.

Before, when I saw blood everywhere next door, I just assumed something had happened to them. But after hearing Chen Yin's words, I realized that Song Ran was indeed dead.

At that moment, a bold idea popped into my head: I look exactly like Song Ran, so I could completely replace him. Although we are twins, because he is the eldest and I am the second, our parents value him more.

More importantly, I think…

As Song Ying spoke, her gaze, tinged with suppressed emotion, drifted towards Xu Zhi…

Seeing that Xu Zhi avoided his gaze, Song Ying's eyes dimmed. "At the time, I suspected that my sister-in-law finally couldn't bear it anymore and killed Song Ran. She had a reason to kill Song Ran, but not a reason to kill Song Ying."

As Song Ying spoke, she pinched the hem of her clothes.

He thought countless times that if he were Song Ran, he would definitely keep his promise and would never let his wife and children suffer such humiliation.

He had always thought of himself as a virtuous person who occupied the moral high ground and wanted to save Xu Zhi from her predicament, but only now, seeing the look in Xu Zhi's eyes, did he realize that it was just wishful thinking on his part.

If he were to replace Song Ran and live with Xu Zhi as if nothing had happened, it wouldn't be saving her; for her, it would be the same humiliation.

Xu Zhi is such a good person; neither he nor Song Ran are good enough for her.

"Chen Yin?"

Upon hearing Zhou Zhao's question, Chen Yin hurriedly replied, "I was so shocked at the time that I kept talking about it the whole way. However, there were quite a few carriages parked in front of the Court of Justice, and I didn't notice Song Ying sitting in one of them."

If I had seen it then, I would have shouted that it had risen from the dead.

Zhou Zhao listened and agreed.

Chen Yin still had the sensation of a human head on his hand at that time. If he had suddenly bumped into Song Ying, he probably would have fainted from fright.

Heavy snow fell in Chang'an, and news of Li Huaishan's arrest spread throughout the city. The colleagues at the Court of Justice felt extremely ashamed, and most of them arrived by carriage. The area in front of the Court of Justice was indeed very lively.

Guan Lin and Song Ying were probably not lying; there were clear witnesses to everything they said.

Whether the carriage hit Chu You, whether Chu You mentioned the case, and even the tavern they stayed at after leaving the city—all these things can be traced.

So, if none of the three people present were the murderer, then who was the one who killed Song Ran?

Zhou Zhao pondered in his heart, "The murderer knew Song Ran's arrangements, including his plan to go to the mass grave to move the corpses, his arrangement for Song Ying to leave the city while he stayed in the city to mingle with An Ning. He knew about the secret room in the manor south of the city and how to open it."

He hated that Song Ran was with An Ning, but compared to that, his hatred for Song Ran was even deeper. He wished he could tear Song Ran apart, otherwise he would not be able to quell the hatred in his heart.

Furthermore, he was very familiar with bamboo strips. After cutting off the head, he used bamboo strips to connect the person back together... He must have had this skill, and the bamboo strips were his own. After all, we did not find any broken bamboo strips in either the secret room or the peaceful residence.

The murderer was alone and must have been quite strong, because not only did he have to decapitate and sever the limbs, but he also needed to transport the body from the neighboring courtyard to the secret room and tie it up. Inside the secret room, we found no signs of dragging.

This suggests that the murderer was able to easily lift the body, and was very likely a man.

After committing the murder, the killer neither cleaned up the bloody scene next door nor chose to bury the body. Instead, he went to great lengths to move the body to a secret room, demonstrating his deep resentment towards Song Ran's so-called life-or-death situation.

Zhou Zhao gradually sketched out the image of the murderer in his mind.

"The murderer not only knew Song Ran, but also Xu Zhi. He knew that as long as Song Ran stayed overnight at An Ning's place, she wouldn't stay in the courtyard. If she wasn't in the courtyard, she naturally wouldn't make a fuss."

This matter is highly confidential; only members of the household, or close relatives, would know about it.

As Zhou Zhao finished speaking, he had a guess in his mind.

"So the murderer is a man skilled in bamboo weaving, who hates Song Ran for choosing An Ning, and who hates him for repeatedly turning that life-or-death situation into a joke. He's someone you know..."

As Zhou Zhao spoke, he glanced at Xu Zhi, who was standing to the side with her head down, and then at Song Ying, whose expression was somber.

She pursed her lips. "It seems that the name of that person has already popped into your minds."

If I'm not mistaken, when I told you that Song Ran and An Ning were murdered together, tied to a wooden frame in a secret room, their heads and limbs severed, you knew who the murderer was, didn't you?"

Xu Zhi suddenly looked up, shaking her head frantically, her eyes filled with tears. "I don't know, I don't know!"

“Of course you know,” Zhou Zhao looked at her intently. “You know who the murderer is, so when Song Ying thought you killed Song Ran and took the blame for you, you were absolutely certain that he was lying and that he admitted to killing Song Ran to take the blame for you.”

Song Ying suspects that you killed Song Ran, but why don't you suspect that Song Ying killed Song Ran at all?

He himself thought the Court of Judicial Review would suspect him, didn't he? After all, the brothers were not on good terms, and Song Ying deeply resented his being with An Ning and humiliating him. If it weren't for his alibi, he would be the most suspicious person.

Even before that, he had tried to impersonate Song Ran, which made him even more suspicious.

Why are you so certain that this person is lying when he says he's the murderer? It's because you've guessed who the murderer is.

Xu Zhi pursed her lips, trying her best to remain calm, and shook her head, "I don't know what you're talking about, Lord Zhou."

Zhou Zhao looked at her and sighed inwardly, "Your family is poor, you lost your mother at a young age, and you are an only child raised by your father... It doesn't matter if you don't say anything. Since he didn't hide the body and used bamboo strips, he probably didn't intend to hide it."

I suspect he'll soon turn himself in at the Court of Judicial Review.

Whether Xu Zhi tells her or not, she can find out who it is. After all, many of the murderer's characteristics are already quite clear. She only needs to investigate the people around Xu Zhi to easily find that person.

Although the Song family was not a prominent family, they were a scholarly family, so naturally no one in the family would be skilled at splitting bamboo strips.

Just then, footsteps sounded at the door, and Wu Qingshan walked in holding an umbrella.

"Zhou Tingshi, the murderer who killed Song Ran and An Ning, has turned himself in at the Court of Justice."

Everyone present looked at Zhou Zhao in disbelief, especially Chen Yin, whose eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

This is just too amazing!
I just said the murderer would turn himself in, and here he is!
Xu Zhi could no longer hold back her tears.

"When I got married, my father made me swear to heaven that my love for me would never change, or I would be torn apart by five horses and die a terrible death."